How is Friendly Foes' sound different then your other respective bands?
If we were to draw some kind of Venn diagram, with the word "pop" on one side and "insane" on the other, Friendly Foes might be floating somewhere in the middle. Kiddo is a pure pop band, which I totally respect and enjoy. This is just my observation, but their songs are really timeless, and hearken back to an era before rock and roll was overtaken by consumerism and trends... they kind of have that whole Buddy Holly thing going on... sweet songs, that are very earnest and genuine, and also super melodic and super fun to sing along to.

On the other hand, Thunderbirds, while I do feel possess tons of elements of what would define a "pop" band, functions on a much more intense level. Our shows usually get out of hand, body parts are flailing, and general chaos seems inevitable at any point in the set. Things are unhinged and dangerous, and hopefully people feel a bit more able to let themselves go at TAN! shows than they would watching something a bit more stiff.

So to me, Foes kind of take elements of both band and sort of mesh them together. Whereas Kiddo might be a bit cleaner, Foes are kind of rough around the edges and seem to "rock" a bit more -- ala TAN!. Whereas TAN! might be a bit wilder, Foes kind of real that energy in more to formulate more compact songs -- ala Kiddo -- that get to the point without any kind of so-called "abstract" experimentation (for example, while TAN! songs have tons of keyboards, drum machines, effects, etc., Foes songs are a bit more traditional in their composition and set up -- plus there's only three of us, so there's not a whole lot of opportunity to experiment, if you will). But I think the thing we share in common is the desire to entertain people, make people feel at ease at the shows, and not like we're up there grandstanding or posing... we make jokes, we smile, and we have a ton of fun -- and I think that approach is applicable to all 3 bands.

Reading back, I might not have answered your question, but...oh well.

I think you answered it. So you guys came together as a band really fast early in the year; did you already have some of the material in the works before the band was all set?
I would say a handful of the songs were written, demoed, and ready to roll when we first started practicing -- though, that's not to say changes weren't made when we started learning them. But yes, there was a bit of a stockpile at the beginning, and some of the songs that I had ready to learn at the start actually haven't been attempted by the band -- some probably never will. But it was good to have 10 or so songs to choose from at the start, that way everybody had a chance to listen and decide on what direction to go... we got to pick from a surplus of songs and sort of focus on the songs that we all liked the best. That way everybody was on the same page and felt invested in the project, instead of me just handing them a demo of 10 songs and saying, "Learn these as is by next Friday. Kthanxbye."

But it also helps that we all live really close together, and we all really gung-ho about starting the band -- I think after, like, the first or second practice, we decided to book our first show, to just get things rolling and have a goal to meet that we all felt was achievable. Nobody was expecting any of us to be in a new band, so there wasn't any pressure at all. We were just having a blast writing and practicing and hanging out, so we decided instead of wait a year and play, we were just going to dive in to it all headfirst. We've been swimming along at a pretty rapid rate ever since -- on the hunt like a menacing shark looking to devour little baby seals...or something.

Your debut album Born Radical is jam packed with 13 tracks of power pop goodies, which one's are your favorite?
Picking a favorite song is kind of like a parent picking out which of their kids are their "favorite" -- no matter what, you kind of have to love them all the same in order to really stand behind them as a complete work. That said, I'm really proud of the songs on the record that the three of us collaborated more on -- the kind of "second wave" songs that came after we had a few shows under our belts and a bit more of an understanding of how we all worked together. Those are the songs that I feel really define us as a band, and really kind of take the focus off of this band being perhaps about one particular person or whatever, and shifts the spotlight onto the fact that yes, we are a band made up of three people, and we aren't a side project: we're a real band that writes songs together, plays shows, and makes records.

By the by, if Brad was answering this, he'd probably say "Get Yr Shit Together" cos he gets to play drums like Animal from "The Muppet Show" during the song, and Lizzie might say, um... well I'm not sure what she'd say, so I'll just say "Get Ripped" because she sings it and she's a fucking HUGE ego-maniac.

I kid, I kid.

I noticed several songs on the album such as Get Yr Shit Together, Couch Surfing and Full Moon Morning speak directly to Gen Xers and Yers, was that intentional?
I wasn't really attempting to "speak" to any generation by any means...that would probably make me an asshole (more than I already am, or more than people already think that I am). A lot of the songs are just kind of about my experiences, a lot of them connecting to my life and attempts at being a "musician" -- songs about the hardships that come with constant touring, the strains that can put on relationships, and the broken promises that come along with it all.

Some of the songs kind of talk about a nostalgia for a time before dudes with nothing but time on their hands and an Internet connection became the judges and jury of what bands became "cool" and buzzed about... some of the songs are about sort of just longing for the days of getting passed a mixed tape from a friend of a friend, and finding out about Cap N Jazz, Gilbert O'Sullivan, and the Sea and Cake all in one sitting. Or flipping through album liner-notes and indie rock magazines/zines to find out about new bands that you might not be hip to yet. Things were much more of an adventure -- or a scavenger hunt, if you will -- back then. Now shit is just crammed down our throats, and our attention span is shorter and shorter because of it.

So yeah, a lot of the songs touch on those themes or subjects, and hopefully people can identify with that in some way, even if they've never spent time crammed in a van and sleeping on floors, or eating Taco Bell every day cos they need to save money to put in the gas tank or whatever. But if not, that's cool too. Just keep on stealing music and listening to remixes, if you want.

How was it different putting this record together then say a TAN! record?
The obvious answer is that there's different people involved, so the end result is going to be much much different from band to band. I would also say that because we recorded it at the Tempermill, which is essentially 5 minutes from where we all live, we got to take a ton of time on it, and making sure it was what we wanted it to be. There was no deadline, nor did we feel any pressure to "deliver" something in particular, so it was more relaxed in some sense.

Don't you guys have a hundred local guest musicians on this record?
We have a hundred, minus 95.

Is it really true that every musician worth their salt is eventually in like six different bands in this town?
I wouldn't say that is necessarily true at all. I think it'd be pretty unfair to say that if you're only in one band than whatever band you are in, or whatever you are trying to create, isn't worth anybody's time. I don't think you'd find anybody in town who would say that about, say, the Silent Years or the Hard Lessons (even though I'm sure, and know in some cases, that they dibble dabble in other things).

I think that there are just some people in bands, myself included, who have multiple personalities songwriting-wise, and need an outlet for various things, kind of in the same way a Matthew Dear or Tad Mullinix release music under different aliases. A lot of people are multifaceted here, and there's a pretty great community of artists around here who are eager to collaborate with each other...and that's fucking awesome to me.

But to exemplify my point above -- look at Four Hour Friends, who are, to me, a shining example of a bunch of people who just want to get together, drink some beers, make some cool songs, and play some fun shows. They are all in other bands that are all really great. But, honestly, if NONE of them were in other bands, that band would stand up on it's own, because they are really fucking good, too. See where I'm going with this?

Which "local super group" is better with a switchblade and a chain: Child Bite, Friendly Foes, Copper Thieves or Impostors of the Deep Society?
I'm not really sure, dude. Each band's name has some element of viciousness to it -- Child BITE, Friendly FOES, Copper THIEVES, IMPOSTORS OF THE DEEP SOCIETY (the whole name kind of sounds like somebody the X-Men would battle) -- so I'm sure each would put up quite a good fight. If it were done on rollerblades, in traffic, "Skitchin'"-style, I'm going to have to go with the Foes on that one.

What's in store for everyone at your CD release show tonight at the Berkley Front?
A massive bag of money, back massages, free cigarettes, pony rides, and as much lobster as you can eat!

Or, rather, just us playing rock music with our friends, and maybe some cake.

Aren't you worried that the Art Fag guys will get totally fucking wasted and start DJ'ing some really shitty music by Cyndi Lauper?
I'm more worried that I'll get fucking wasted and start singing along to that shitty Cyndi Lauper song.

Don't miss the Friendly Foes' CD RELEASE party tonight at the Berkley Front